Experimental study of droplet deformation and breakup in a jet-stirred homogeneous isotropic turbulent water tunnel.

• Grant number: 24/16839-4
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships abroad - Research
• Start date: December 09, 2024
• End date: March 08, 2025
• Field of knowledge: Engineering - Mechanical Engineering - Transport Phenomena
• Principal Investigator: Oscar Mauricio Hernandez Rodriguez
• Grantee: Oscar Mauricio Hernandez Rodriguez
• Host Investigator: Alfredo Soldati
• Host Institution: Escola de Engenharia de São Carlos (EESC). Universidade de São Paulo (USP). São Carlos , SP, Brazil
• Institution abroad: Vienna University of Technology (TU Wien), Austria

Abstract

Considering global greenhouse gas emissions and climate goals, a promising method of reducing carbon emissions is the CO2 capture and transport via subsea lines and wells to be stored in depleted oil and gas reservoirs in subsea sediments. The CO2 capture involves the use of subsea separators that usually must deal with mixtures of oil, water and gas. Separation efficiency depends on the liquid mixture effective viscosity, which can be very different whether the continuous liquid is water or oil. The continuous phase inversion is a process that occurs in flows involving two liquids, and it is important in several applications, processes and industries, as oil-and-gas, food, and chemistry. It happens when the dispersed phase takes the place of the continuous phase and vice-versa. Large changes in the mixture effective viscosity and pressure drop in pipelines are related to phase inversion. One key parameter for designing separators or predicting phase inversion in a subsea line is the prediction of droplet diameter in turbulent flow. Many studies on theoretical or empirical models for the prediction of droplet diameter in turbulent flow have been developed in the last years, especially for fluids with low viscosity. However, the droplet viscosity can affect significantly the breakup process and the drop diameter. In this research, experiments will be carried out in a new jet-stirred turbulent water tunnel capable of producing high Reynolds numbers, high energy dissipation rates, and feature excellent isotropy and homogeneity. The aim is to investigate droplet deformation and breakup in turbulence in the framework of the Kolmogorov-Hinze assumption, using high-viscosity droplets that are expected to stretch and form thin filaments. The new data on turbulent energy dissipation rate will be used to develop a phenomenological model for predicting viscous droplet diameter.